My Feelings Still Remain
by BewilderedFemale
Summary: "Forgetting someone you love is like trying to remember someone you've never met." Seiya conveys to Usagi how he still feels through a song, only to end up embarking on an adventure of a lifetime - Post Galaxia war
1. Chapter 1

**Description: Seiya conveys to Usagi how he still feels through a song, only to end up embarking on an adventure of a lifetime - Post Galaxia war**

**AN: ****I also feel I should clarify the fact that just because this is a Usagi/Seiya fic doesn't mean I hate Mamoru, on the contrary; I feel that every single character serves a significant purpose just like for the sake of this story, Usagi and Mamoru will not follow canon. This story will probably only be 2 to 3 chapters long, a short, but sweet Seiya/Usagi treat :-)**

**It's my first time writing a Sailormoon fic, so let me know your thoughts!**

* * *

The war was over, peace and prosperity reigned right? Well... sort of. Having been so very close to losing all of her friends and loved one's, not to mention her own life; Usagi was never quite the same again.  
Five years had gone by and in certain respects she hadn't changed at all, she was still goofy at times, accident prone at the wrong moments, but her inner desire and love for her friends was the first priority in her life, sometimes even setting aside her own issues for their sake. It was the quality in Usagi that made her shine so bright amongst a world that was in a sense starting anew and so desperately needed the emotional repair as well as physical.

It was late one Friday evening and Usagi had just gotten back from Makoto's house. They had all ordered in pizza and she had made one of Usagi's favorites; strawberry shortcake. Usagi of course was over the moon with joy and helped herself to three slices of the strawberry shortcake, everything had been going so well and then Rei had to bring him up.

"How is Mamorou Usagi chan? Have you talked to him lately?"  
She laughed a little to forcefully as she gobbled up the rest of her cake. "He's doing fine! Always busy since he went back to America."

"But you still talk right? He keeps in contact?" Ami asked.

"We do, and he's doing fine, I'll be sure to send your regards to him the next time we talk." And that had been it, Usagi had gotten up to help herself to another piece of cake.  
She hadn't lied to them, they did keep in touch, but Usagi couldn't help but shake that feeling, the sentiment that she had not expected him to leave again. Usagi had thought that the whole Galaxia war occurrence would make him see that there were more important things in life than practically giving up your life and happiness to pursue a career. It wasn't that she was against Mamoru going to school, she supported that decision, but why couldn't he stay and go to one of the local Universities? More to the point, she didn't understand his attitude in general after the war, he seemed so indifferent about everything.

"I knew you would manage everything Usako." He said to her the night he told her he was leaving. "I have always had faith in your ability, and that's why I have to work hard too and why I've decided I need to go back to America."

He hadn't even consulted the issue with her, he had simply made the decision on his own and in a way she was not surprised. Mamoru had always been very private even with regards to decisions that would effect more than himself, it's just the way he was. Sometimes it was a strength but right now, it didn't seem that way to Usagi. She didn't cry or complain to him about it though, she was past all that. At times she considered the possibility that his leaving was a way for him to prove to himself that he would be good enough for her. She was after all the 'one' who had saved them all, he probably felt like he needed to be great as well to actually have something of significance to offer.

"Baka Mamoru.." She sighed to herself as she stood on her balcony, unable to go to sleep. She was grateful that it was Friday, she didn't need to worry about waking up early the next day. She looked up to the sky wondering what _he _was doing now.  
She blushed and quickly jerked her head back towards the city. What was done is done, she had made her choice, it was what had been expected of her and the mature thing to do... However... it would've been nice to at least talk to him and see how he was doing, maybe she could write him a letter?  
She sighed and slapped herself on the forehead.

"How would you send it to him baka?"

There she was, standing on her balcony and arguing with herself over her conflicted feelings when she heard a rustle off in the distance, there was a dark figure that had exposed itself and then hid. Her blue eyes looked all over for the source but when she looked off to the right, there was a loud banging sound and several alley cats took off running.  
She sighed again and hung her head, thinking about him wouldn't do at all, he was gone and more than likely she'd never see him again.

* * *

Three days later Usagi was at work. She was a clothes shop assistant part time while she took college courses in the evenings, having decided that she would help people in any way possible, she had ultimately decided on working to become a registered nurse. A huge factor in that decision of course had been that she hoped that it would ultimately enable her to work alongside Mamoru better as well. It wasn't easy at first and truth be told, there were times when she felt like quitting but her friends were always there to lift her spirits and as a result, she had simply worked harder in hopes to one day realize her dreams.

Luckily she was off from school for the Summer so she was working more days at the clothes store, but she realized early on that she didn't like the routine, and was falling into a rut.

"Talk to Mamoru, maybe you can visit him for a few days Usagi Chan!" Rei had suggested. Her big blue eyes lit up and she stood up rapidly with excitement.

"That's right! I've never been to America, and I wouldn't bother him or get in his way, I'll stay in a hotel and just visit him when he's off from classes, and ,and, and.. While he's in class, I can visit the museum, or eat tasty American food or, or, or!"

"Calm down Usagi." Rei said rolling her eyes.

But she didn't calm down, she was happier than she had been in a really long time and she ran all the way home and quickly raced up the stairs to her room where she picked up the phone and anxiously called Mamoru, only to be greeted by his answering machine.  
She left him a message to call her back when he had a chance and she anxiously waited by the phone where minutes turned to hours and he still had not called back.  
She was disappointed but not necessarily surprised, he was always so busy with his study sessions and classes that sometimes several days would pass before she heard from him; she understood that it wasn't his fault, it was just the nature of their circumstances.

It was night time already, and she stood out in her balcony looking out towards the city once again, overwhelmed by a sense of tremendous loneliness and wondering what it was all for when she heard a tune off the distance unlike anything she had ever heard before.

"_Even though you're miles away, you draw me to you  
my love, it's leading me astray_."

She gasped and her eyes lit up, the voice sounded so incredibly familiar that she began to tremble with anticipation, could it be him? She looked around everywhere but couldn't find the source of the music.

"_You're my obsession,  
It's my own fault,  
You'll understand, but it doesn't matter now_."

Hurriedly, she dashed down the stairs and ran out the door, looking around to try and find the source of the music that she could plainly hear.

"_My feelings still remain_."

She looked around, becoming frustrated that she couldn't find the source of the music.

"_My feelings still remain."_

She could hear plainly as she ran across the block in her bunny slippers, she knew she probably looked like a lunatic, but she knew that voice could only belong to one person, the question was, why wasn't he showing himself to her? Frustrated even more than what she was before, she was about to give up her search, already she was walking back to her house when she saw a figure walking up to her. She could hear the heels of his shoes stepping on the concrete, his hands in his pockets. He was wearing a red suit, with his dark hair tied back, just like before...  
Usagi stayed rooted to her spot, she couldn't believe he was really here, it was a dream; she'd wake up and find that this was all just another dream, but she wasn't waking up, and he was coming closer, and closer, until he stood right in front of her with that dashing smile of his.

"Odango! Aren't you going to greet me?"

Her mouth dropped open, but she quickly closed it and then began to stutter. "Se... Se... Seiya... " She finally ground out.

"The one and only." He said smiling back.

Usagi stayed staring at him for several long moments. Her body was flooded with such a wave of emotions, happiness, despair, love, anxiety, so much that she almost fell as she began to sway slightly.

"Odango!" He yelled as he quickly ran to her and placed his arms around her. "You're not going to become like my fans and faint at the sight of me are you?" He joked, but he was in fact concerned as he looked for any sign of illness on her face.

"Seiya.." She whispered as she looked at him in awe. "You're really here." She said and grabbed the front of his suit to verify that he was actually really there, she did it too roughly though and one of the buttons on his shirt popped open.

"Odango please! If you're going to undress me, let's not do it in public OK?" He said as he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at her.

That seemed to snap her out of the haze she was in and she immediately balled up her fists and began to shake. "Baka Seiya! You would say something like that to me wouldn't you?! Baka! Baka! Baka!"

He pinched the bridge of his nose but laughed at her reaction. "It's good to see that some things will never change."

She stopped and looked up at him with wide eyes before she smiled. "It's really good to see you Seiya; I had missed you." She said with a slight blush on her cheeks.

He placed his hand on her shoulder and smiled. "I missed you too, and I'm glad that I did decide to come back."

"and the others?" She quickly asked.

He sighed in turn. "They're uhhh.. still on Kinmoku. The truth is that they thought it was foolish of me to come back." He said with a far off look.

"What why?" Usagi asked, but Seiya side-stepped the question and asked her another. "Where is your boyfriend Odango? And your friends?" He asked with a smirk that masked his inner green monster. This time Usagi was the one who tried to side step the question. "They're fine thanks, say! How long are you going to be staying here anyway? And where are you staying exactly? How long are you going to be here for?

Seiya held his hands up, motioning for her to take it easy. "Eh! Odango! You're full of energy like always!

Usagi frowned a bit. "Well of course! It's not every day I get to see you; you're very special to me Seiya, all the Starlights are."

Seiya smiled at her response and walked up to her so that his finger caressed her cheek. "You have such a big heart Odango, it's why I… " He then blinked and pulled away from her, his cheeks turning a bright red that was quite obviously despite the fact that they were in the dark.

"Odango, I… I can't stay for very long, as a matter of fact; I leave in a week from now."

"WHAT?!" Usagi yelled and then covered her mouth and quickly looked around to make sure she hadn't woken up a nearby neighbor. "But Seiya, you've been gone for five years and you're only going to stay a week? That hardly gives us time to reintroduce you to the rest of the gang!"

His blush became even more intense as he looked at the ground and avoided eye contact. "As much as I miss them too Odango, my sole purpose in coming was to see you. I.. I'm not really sure why I came. To be honest, I thought you would've been married to Mamoru by now. I guess I was just looking for closure."

She blinked at him. "Closure? Closure from what? I don't get it"

He stayed staring at her in disbelief and then let out a hearty laugh, which only served to confuse Usagi even more. Here she thought she had in her mind at least, matured dramatically since they had last met and it turned out that all it took was a few minutes in his presence and she was back to being a teenager again.

"Odango, what would you say to going on vacation with me?" He asked, still chuckling and wiping a tear from his cheek.

"Wha? Really?"

He nodded. "Just as friends, you have holiday from school don't you?"

"Well yeah but I can't Seiya, I'm working at a clothes store and I have to give them at least a week's notice about vacation time, and then there's… "

"You work at Chibi Girl don't you?" He interrupted with a smirk.

"Yeah, Hey! How did you know that?"

He smirked at her, his eyes twinkling mischievously. "I'll talk to the owner tomorrow, and once he agrees to give you the week off…"

He then leaned in very close, so close that Usagi gasped in shock, for a minute it almost seemed as if he were going to.. but then he stopped.

"Once he agrees to give you the week off; I'll Wisk you away somewhere beautiful; it'll be an adventure of a lifetime.

"But.. Seiya…" She began.

"Tomorrow Odango, be at the store at 9:00am." He said as he was already walking away from her.

She was in such shock that she couldn't even reply, and a part of her was actually curious about if he would actually carry through with this crazy idea. Maybe it was just a joke and she'd laugh and that would be the end of it, but then again it was Seiya and usually he always meant what he said, he'd never lie to her about something like that.

He disappeared into the darkness of one of the alley's, but just before he was completely gone from view, she again heard that loud crash, followed by several alley cats scampering about. She suddenly realized that there was a great possibility that on the night she was standing on the balcony looking at the stars and thinking about him in particular; he had been there watching her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you all so much for your reviews! I'm really enjoying writing this story! It might turn out to be slightly longer, we'll see!**

* * *

Usagi had trouble sleeping that night as she tossed and turned, her mind completely encompassed around the fact that Seiya had come back, and he wanted to go on Vacation with her. Her mind was at battle with her heart and they would debate with one another.

"_He said that we would be going as friends; there is nothing wrong with that, you've gone out with him alone before_." Her heart would say.

"_But you know better than that, you have feelings for him and it's dangerous to be alone with someone who you harbor feelings for_." Her mind would reply.

"I know what I'll do!" She finally decided; she tried her luck at calling Mamoru again, if he gave his ok, then her mind would be at ease so she did just that. It rang and rang and just when she was about to hang up, she heard a click and the sound of his voice on the receiving end. "Hello this is Mamoru." He answered.

"Mamo-Chan? It's me." She replied happily.

"Oh Usako! It's good to hear you, but I can't talk right now, I've just arrived and I have to get going again or I'll be late for my internship."

"Oh... Well, what I need to ask you is very brief. I uhh... you know I'm on holiday right? Well someone asked me if I wanted to go on vacation with them; Seiya asked me Mamo-chan."

She waited for him to say no, but to her surprise he was silent for a while before replying: "Who is Seiya again?"

She all but fell in shock at his reply. "Really Mamo-Chan? You don't remember who Seiya is? He's one of the Sailor Star Lights! He helped save this planet from destruction during the war."

"Oh yeah! Now I remember. Sure; have fun, send my regards. I really gotta go now Usako; talk to you later." And with that he hung up, the words: 'I love you' still on Usagi's tongue before she could say it to him.  
She sighed as she hung up. He was making it so damn difficult to love him, it was times like these that she wondered what it was all for.  
A future of always being placed behind everything else that was going on in his life didn't seem comforting to her at all. Would it have killed him to set aside five lousy minutes to just tell her he was thinking about her?

"Seiya would have." She found herself replying.

She took a deep breath and got up from her bed, having given up on the notion of sleep, but ultimately decided that she deserved a vacation and Mamoru hadn't objected so what was to stop her? Luckily meeting up with Seiya wasn't too far off so she would just arrive earlier. She contemplated bringing her roll-on luggage bag but decided she'd really look like a fool if it turned out this had just been a joke, so to play it safe, she brought along her back pack instead.  
She was just putting the last of her things in her bag when Luna climbed in through the window.

She waved her tail in the air as she crept up to Usagi who was still busily packing. "Usagi Chan? Why aren't you sleeping?"

"Hi Luna; I couldn't really sleep, I uhh.. I might actually be going on vacation."

"Might be going on vacation? What's going on?"

So Usagi told her everything and as she suspected; She was having a fit. "You can't go! Are you crazy? Wait until the other senshi know about this!"

Usagi sighed angrily. "You know.. I love you all dearly; I would give my life for any of you, but I'm getting really sick and tired of being told what I can and can't do."

She then turned to her cat and smiled.  
"Luna, I am a grown woman, you've always been there for me and I love you for it, but right now; I want to do this, and Mamoru didn't object, so why should anyone else?"

"Becase he wasn't there Usagi! He can't even imagine how deeply Seiya really feels for you! That's why!"

"It's been five years Luna, what makes you think that.." But she knew better, so she didn't even finish that sentence. "Anyway.. I have to go now. I'll call mom and dad later and tell them I'll be gone for a few days." She got up to leave but stopped when Luna said:

"Usagi.. please, just don't do anything you'll regret, nobody wants to see you get hurt."

She smiled as she looked at her. "If I don't attempt this, that will be my biggest regret." She said and then left.

* * *

She had time to kill, so she went into the cafe that was next to the Chibi girl store and had breakfast outside. She was nearly done when she saw Seiya walking out with her boss, she could somewhat overhear what they were saying:

"It's no trouble at all Mr. Kou, and if you and Usagi decide to stay longer, just give me a call and it'll be no trouble at all! Oh, and thanks again for this signed three lights poster, my daughter will be beyond thrilled!

Usagi was stunned. "I'll be damned! He really did it!"  
Her boss was so entranced the he walked back inside the store and didn't even notice Usagi sitting only a few feet away, Seiya however noticed her right away. He smiled and winked at her like he always use to, causing her to blush at the memory.

"Odango! You made it! Were you waiting long?" He asked as he took a seat next to her.

"I got here early." She said as she sipped the last of her tea.

His eyes grew wide. "You? Early?!" He looked around and then back at her before he pinched himself. "No, this isn't a dream, you really just said you're on time!"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm not that same irresponsible and helpless girl I was when you left Seiya."

He smiled and leaned closer to her. "I can see that, but you've always been amazing in my eyes Odango." He whispered. "That's why I came back."

She honestly didn't know how to answer that so she didn't and instead continued to slurp on her drink even though there was nothing left.  
He smiled and pointed at her cup. "You want another? I could use a hot tea myself."

"Sure." She said as she got up picked up her large back pack. He smiled at it. "Is that all you're bringing?"

"Well yeah, how long are we going to be gone?"

"Until I leave of course." He said. "But don't worry; I can always buy you anything you need."

They got their hot tea and not two minutes after they got their orders, a limo pulled up in front of the shop. The driver came around and bowed to them before he handed them two airplane tickets. Usagi pulled the barcode slip out of the sleeve and practically screamed when she saw that their destination was Venice, Italy. Immediately, Usagi felt her stomach knot up, but she realized it was from the excitement, she had never done anything like this before. She recalled on one occasion when she and Mamo chan were in the park. They were sitting together in companiable silence when all of the sudden, the smell of pizza wafted through the air.  
"Mmmm! That smell makes me hungry!" She had cried out happily.

He nodded. "Yes, it smells like pizza, there's a new Italian restaurant down the street."

"We studied Italy in my European history class; it sounds like a wonderful place to visit, wouldn't you want to visit Italy Mamo chan?" She had asked.

He seemed to think about it before he replied: "Ehhh, I don't know Usako. Italy is very expensive, and with all our school, and studying, I don't think it's even really worth thinking about honestly."

And that had ended the conversation. He gave the final say and that had been it.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when Seiya took her by the arm and guided her into the limo.  
Once they were seated inside, Seiya pulled out a map that he had scribbled all over. "So we're landing in Venice, we'll stay there for a day, and then we travel to Bologna and then Florence! Where I thought we might rent bicycles and ride past the vineyards that way. He continued to ramble on about all the stuff he wanted to do. Usagi blinked in shock and amazement. _Seiya... That's what I've always wanted to do_! She thought as she continued to listen to him.

In no time they arrived at the airport. As they were walking towards their gate, Both Usagi and Seiya turned to look at the spot where they had first met. She looked at him and blushed. "You still remember?"

"Of course I do Odango, It was after all, the moment my life would change forever... Oh look, I think they're boarding already!" He said as he pointed to their gate. They were letting families with young kids first but the tickets Seiya had gotten for them was first class so they were tended to immediately. The area where they were in was spacious and they hadn't even sat down when the stewardess came by and asked them what they wanted to drink. They ordered their drinks and sat down; there was a TV screen in front of them that had up to 200 channels. Usagi was flipping through the channels when something caught her eye and she realized they were playing the Starlights movie. She laughed out loud and pointed at the screen. "Seiya! You're on TV!"

"Eh? Oh yeah!" He said with a smile but then frowned when he saw Usagi was laughing so loudly.

"Come on Odango! It wasn't that bad!" But she was nodding like it was. "And the effects that they added when you use your powers! I almost peed myself the first time I saw it I was laughing so hard! Was this a low budget film or something?"

Seiya rolled his eyes and gave her a playful shove. "It's not like I was going to use my real powers Odango."

She finally stopped laughing and looked at him. "Come to think of it." She said having lowered her voice significantly. "I haven't used my powers in almost five years, had no need to since the war."

"Well, that's a good thing right?" He asked as he got comfortable and wrapped his arm around her. "You have peace and prosperity; nothing to worry about and all is good in the world."

She stayed thinking about it for a while. "In some ways that is true, but ..." She stopped talking and he continued to look at her.

"Eh.. Odango.. I know I'm probably pushing the subject but... Why.. I mean.. Why haven't you and.. Why are you not married yet?"

She sighed and looked out her window, watching as the workmen loaded luggage up the ramp.

"That is a very complicated matter that I myself am not too sure about. Mamo Chan is very set in his ways Seiya. He decided a long time ago that he was going to be a doctor and nothing, not even a galaxy war will deter him from trying to reach that goal. It is a very powerful strength of his, and I use to admire that trait about him a lot... but lately.."

He sighed. "I know what you're saying. He's a very driven individual and you're right, it is an admirable trait, but it sounds like you two are headed in different directions at this point in your lives."

She turned to him with wide eyes, why was he the only one who understood it? She would try to tell the other senshi and they wouldn't even let her finish talking; they'd quickly side with him and feed her the 'destiny' bit, she was so sick of it. She didn't understand why she had to be condemned to loneliness and heartache, where he obviously could do whatever he wanted, and she had to sit there and wait for him. They spent more time apart than they did together and she couldn't understand why she had to sit there and accept it.

"Odango." He said as he interrupted her thoughts. He noticed that she was growing far too serious.

"I want you to forget about everything. We are going to have the time of our lives on this trip."  
She smiled in turn and got comfortable against him, where in no time she fell fast asleep.

* * *

"She did what?!" The senshi all yelled at the same time when Luna told them the news.

"Like I said; she's gone with Seiya."

"But.. I thought... I didn't even know Seiya was here!" Ami said in shock.

"Are the other starlights here too?" Minako asked. Luna shook her head. "I don't know, but I don't think so.

"Well, what should we do? Should we go after them?" Rei asked.

"Where would we go? We don't' know where they've gone." Makoto replied.

"I think we should call Mamoru, he will definitely know."

They all nodded and Makoto grabbed her phone again and dialed, she waited and waited, but he wasn't picking up and she finally hung up. "He's not answering, should we call back and leave him a message?"

Ami shook her head. "No, we can try again later."

They waited about an hour later and tried again but with no success in reaching him.

"I don't understand, it's like pulling teeth to try and get a hold of him!" Minako said in an exasperated manner.

"You don't think that…" Rei said while looking at them all.

"No way, we know Usagi would never cheat on Mamoru, we're probably overacting to this. When Usagi gets back, she'll have a plausible explanation to all of this." Ami replied. They all nodded but deep down, they were all worried about what the future really had in store.


	3. Chapter 3

**So you've probably figured out by now that it will be more than 3 chapters, more for you to read right? **

* * *

Usagi and Seiya finally arrived in Venice, but they couldn't afford to recover from Jetlag just yet as they had much to do and not a lot of time in which to do everything Seiya had listed. Usagi was amazed at his energy, it was extremely obvious to her that he had been needing and probably had been planning this vacation getaway for quite some time. She couldn't help but wonder if he would have still gone through with it even if she had not been able to join him. She filed that away in her mind, waiting for an appropriate occasion to bring it up.

They had arrived at the luggage claim section and already there was a driver in uniform holding up a sign with his name on it.

"Come Odango that must be our driver." He said as he took her hand and led her through the crowds. Her cheeks grew hot as he continued to hold her hand, she imagined that they must have looked like a couple on holiday, and the truth was that the knowledge of that made her feel alive, and desired, something she had not felt in quite a long time.

They checked into their hotel, a suite that had two separate bedrooms; he had thought of everything to ensure there would be no awkwardness.

They didn't stay long, and were immediately out walking the streets in San Marco Piazza.  
It was a very warm day, and Usagi was already fanning herself.

"Seiya?"

"Yeah." He said as he was looking over the map they had.

"I'm hungry."

"I am too actually, what's near us?" He asked as he looked around. Only a few feet away was a food vendor selling Panini's that looked relatively ok in appearance, and then across from him was a man selling some weird looking grey meat that he extracted from a large steel pot. People would hand him change in return for a napkin full of the strangely colored meat.

Both Usagi and Seiya looked at each other wearily. "I think we should play it safe and find a restaurant Odango."

They didn't have to go very far before they ended up in a gelato store that also made panini's. It was obvious that people here liked panini's, it was all over the place. Usagi ordered the artichoke and pesto Panini while Seiya had the Mozzarella and sundried tomato. Usagi was expecting to be served an ordinary pressed sandwich only to be extremely pleased when a mammoth sized plate with a Panini large enough to feed all of Tokyo was placed in front of her.

She ate all of her's and the half of Seiya's, and then ordered three scoops of gelato. He watched her eat with a smile on his face.

"Still have the ravenous appetite and a size zero figure; you are amazing Odango."

She opened her mouth to respond but then stopped as she frowned. "For your information; I'm not a size zero, I'm a size two."

Seiya rolled his eyes. "Wow, that's huge Odango."

"And you! Need to eat more." She replied. He was about to answer, but as soon as he opened his mouth, she stuck a spoonful of gelato in his mouth.

"O-mmph! Oi! That's pretty good!" Seiya said with amazement.

"Yeah, I just fed you the Rocher flavored gelato."

Before they left, Seiya bought some for himself having realized that the ice cream he had eaten while in Japan was completely different to that of which they had in Venice. For one thing it was much more rich, and intense in flavor, he was looking forward to trying other things as well.

Having refueled, they set out again to do some sightseeing. They went to an art museum, then an open air market, and ended their sightseeing tour of Venice by taking a gondola down the city's picturesque waterways. The sun was setting and the view was absolutely breath taking. She hadn't noticed when it happened, but Seiya had wrapped his arm around her, and she had been resting her head against his chest. She really should have pulled away from him, but she found that she was unable and unwilling to do so. Besides, he wasn't trying anything; he was just sitting there looking very content.  
He noticed she was looking at him and smirked.

"Don't even think about kissing me Odango. I know you want to, but please try to control yourself around me."

Her face contorted to every possible shape, she opened her mouth to retaliate after such an accusation but was unable to when he began to laugh and point at her.

"You should see the look on your face Odango!" He said as he laughed.

A part of her wondered what he would've done if she had leaned in and kissed him right now, it would certainly shut him up good, maybe then he wouldn't be so damn cocky, although she had to admit that was one of the things she had liked about him, he always was so confident, and a flirt.

She raised a brow at him and leveled her eyes. "You talk a good game Seiya, but the fact remains that you still came all the way from Kinmoku to be with me; perhaps _you_ really do want to kiss _me_." She winked and smiled at him. If he wanted to play, she would right back. She normally didn't, but things were always so different when it came to Seiya, she felt like she could do anything when she was with him and it would be ok.

Seiya looked at her and then took off his sunglasses. All playfulness and flirting completely gone as he looked seriously into her eyes, and pulled her closer to him.

"I would kiss you Odango; it's actually one of the things I desire most." He looked into her eyes again and caressed her cheek as if she were the most precious thing in the world, Mamoru never touched her like that, it caused her in to turn freeze up, was he really going to?!

He looked into her eyes yet again but then sighed loudly and put his sunglasses back on. "But I know you wouldn't because you have Mamoru, and I know you would never betray him, and that's one of the qualities about you I admire most, you are so loyal Odano; I trust you with my life."

Usagi sighed and interlocked her fingers together as she looked down at her lap. "Seiya…. I… "

"I know.." He answered. "But believe me, the sheer fact that you're here with me right now riding a gondola in Venice, Italy fills me with an indescribable joy that you could not possibly imagine Odango. I have dreamed about doing such things with you and always thought it to be impossible, and yet here we are." He smirked and looked up to the beautiful skies. "Perhaps I could still wisk you away to Kinmoku someday."

Her eyes went wide and she gasped. Had she been a teenager she would've fought with him and caused a scene that probably would've rocked the gondola boat over and soaked them both for saying such a thing, but now as an adult… a frustrated one at that, she didn't reply at all, just continued to look at him until the gondola ride was over.  
She could tell that he was deep in thought, his facial expressions had changed and she realized that maybe bringing up such a sensitive topic had not been such a good idea after all. Then it hit her; the smell of garlic and spices enticing her being into such a frenzy that her stomach growled loudly in response. Seiya stopped and looked at her with a wicked grin. "Let me guess; you're hungry again."

She blushed and nodded, but he continued to smile as he sniffed the air. "I smell it too, come on, let's go eat." He said as he took her hand and guided her up the street.

* * *

OoOooOooooOo

"He's still not answering his phone?" Rei asked, this was the fifth time that they had tried to get in contact with Mamoru with no success.

Minako hummed to herself as she thought about their current situation. "You know.. If he doesn't answer our calls, doesn't it make you wonder if he even answer's Usagi's?"

Ami looked up and nodded. "If you notice, whenever we bring him up, she usually just changes the subject to something else, makes you wonder if they even talk at all."

"You don't think something's happened to him again do you?" Makoto asked.

Rei shook her head. "I'm going to find out first thing tomorrow, I'm going to call the university and ask if he ever arrived. For all we know the person Usagi thinks she's been talking to could be someone else posing as him. Or even worse, she could be making it all up that she's even talked to him so that we don't worry!"

"And we still don't know if the other sailor star lights are here on Earth?" Ami asked.

Makoto shook her head. "I think we would've known by now if they were here, sounds like this was a solo trip that Seiya took."

Ami sighed. "I hope that we're just reading into this more than necessary. I really don't want to think that something bad will come of all this."

* * *

Yaten walked in as Taiki was lying down in the back porch reading. Before Yaten could even begin to speak, Taiki cleared his throat and said: "No."

"I didn't say anything." Yaten replied with a slight attitude.

"But you were going to." Taiki said as he turned the page.

"It would be good to get away from things for a while." Yaten replied. Taiki blinked and put his book away.

"Are you serious? This coming from you?! The one who couldn't wait to leave Earth and come back to Kinmoku?"

Yaten sighed but did not answer; the truth was that he didn't know what to answer because Taiki was absolutely right. He had been the first one that wanted to get away from Earth at all costs, but what Taiki didn't know is that his thoughts had often been plagued by a certain Sailor Senshi. He often wondered what it would be like to see her again although, as beautiful as she was, she was likely to already have found a boyfriend. She had definitely not gotten married; he would've felt the changes of it by now for sure.

"You formed a spiritual bond with her didn't you?" Taiki asked while still looking at his book.

Yaten got up angrily and walked off without replying, leaving Taiki to think about Earth for the first time in a long while.

**Thanks for all your reviews, I greatly appreciate them!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you for your reviews, and sorry for the slight delay in getting this chapter up, but here it is!**

* * *

The following day, Seiya and Usagi woke up early and took a train to Bologna. She was still tired as the previous night they stayed up quite late at the local bar listening to a group of older men who had obviously had too much to drink try to sing Opera, each of them claiming to be a better tenor than the other, it had been an extremely amusing experience, especially when a bald and very plump red faced man came over to Seiya and draped his arm around him, looked him right in the eye and said:

"I bet you could sing some fine soprano!" He then slapped Seiya hard on the back and brought over a couple of shots of what smelled like rocket fuel, it was very powerful stuff whatever it was, and Seiya turned all colors of the rainbow after he drank it. For a moment it looked like he was going to hurl but after a few coughs and wiping the tears off of his face, he stood up proudly and said: "Not bad"  
There was some laughing at Seiya's expense and even though he took it like a good sport, that's when they had finally decided to call it a night.

The following morning on the train; Usagi had fallen asleep in her seat, her head was swaying towards the window. Seiya carefully cradled her into his arms and before he realized it, she was already snoring. He chuckled as he looked down at her, she was so beautiful, and on top of being beautiful she was so much fun to be around, how could he possibly part ways with her again after this trip?  
He leaned back and sighed. How was it possible that her boyfriend had not married her yet? He understood the need to want to give Odango a better life, but was being separated from her really serving that purpose? She hadn't wanted to talk about it so it was a dead giveaway that things were not going well between them.  
It boiled his blood, for Mamoru had promised him that he'd take care of Odango, how could he possibly take care of her if they were miles apart from each other? Another thing he had noticed was that she hadn't even bothered to contact him, call him, nothing. It was almost as if she wanted to forget about him, about everything. He looked at her again and his mind continued to think of various possibilities and he suddenly realized that even though he had joked with her before about whisking her away, maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea in the end to actually follow through with it.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoo

"So what did you find out from the school?" Rei asked Makoto.

"Well, he's there, safe and sound. It seems like we've just had bad luck getting a hold of him. They told me he's taking four classes plus his internship where he's working nights."

"Makes you wonder if he's ever even at home." Minako said. "Poor Usagi, I bet she feels lonely."

"Well, not anymore apparently." Rei huffed. "She's with Seiya and who knows what will happen!"

"Whatever happens, it's none of our business." Ami replied without looking up from her book.

"How can you say that? Of course it's our business; the future is dependent on her choices! Rei exclaimed.

Ami looked up finally and took off her glasses. "Is it really? We've known Usagi for years; we know that she is a loyal and an honest individual, if she left with Seiya, who are we to question her actions? It's none of our business. We already know that Mamoru is safe, I think the prying should stop here."

"Ami! We're not prying! We're just worried!" Makochan replied looking a bit uncomfortable.

"Anyway, I wonder if the others are worried about Seiya at all, it would be nice to see them again, after all it's been five years!" Minako said in a dream-like manner.

"Still obsessed with Yaten huh?" Makochan teased. "I don't think he was ever really serious about us, either one of them, the only one that was head over heels in love with anyone was Seiya with Usagi. If the others had even remotely cared, I think we would've seen them by now."

Amichan nodded in agreement with MakoChan. "I agree; I would like to see them too, and if the sentiment were mutual, I think they would've made an appearance by now."

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

"Where are you going?" Taiki asked as he snuck up behind Yaten who jumped up and yelped with fright. He grabbed his chest as he tried to catch his breath. "Are you trying to kill me?!"

Taiki bypassed the question and looked at a bag he was packing and then looked up at Yaten again. "You're going to Earth aren't you?"

There was no use in denying it so he didn't. His face became hard as he hastily pulled a wisp of silver hair behind his ear. "Yes! If you must know! I can't just sit around here wondering if that dumb Seiya has gotten into trouble!" He said as he hastily zipped up his bag.

Taiki raised a brow. "I doubt that you're going to check up on Seiya." He was quiet for a few moments, watching how Yaten's face became angrier and angrier. In general, Yaten was often in a foul mood so there was no surprise there, but it was exceedingly interesting to see him so completely obsessed with going back to a planet he swore he'd never set foot on again. Taiki momentarily wondered how long he'd been waiting to do it himself, perhaps seeing Seiya go first was all the push he had needed. He knew for a fact that he wouldn't go looking for Seiya, he'd go to Tokyo right away and probably spy on Minako in order to try to find out if she had a boyfriend and then sulk about the fact that she was single, and if she were dating someone, he'd sulk about that too, in either case he probably wouldn't do anything to approach her, perhaps he'd try to get that cat to do it, Yaten could really be a coward sometimes.

Taiki sighed and turned away from him. "Fine, I'll go too; you obviously need supervision."

Yaten practically growled. "Oi! I'm not five! I know what I'm doing."

"Mmm hmmm" Taiki replied; give me a half hour to pack up; we'll go see your goddess of beauty."

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Seiya and Usagi were in La Piazza del Nettuno in Bologna. There was some kind of festival going on, and there were lots of tents and kiosks set up everywhere. People dressed in 18th century Roman attire roleplaying with other people that were dressed as well, it was all exceedingly amusing. Interestingly enough, there was a lot of French cuisine in the area, and people from France in general. Apparently in 1796, when Napoleon was on the rise, he took French troops and established a settlement in part of Bologna and even to modern date, the French influence could be seen there. There was a patisserie nearby and Usagi was led inside with the wonderful smells of baked bread. Seiya however did not see her stray to the direction of the patisserie and was still talking as he looked over a beautiful pair of Italian sandals he was seriously contemplating on purchasing.

"Oi! Odango?" He said when he finally realized she was gone. Panic filled his chest as he swerved his head in every direction and not being able to see her. She was kinda hard to miss given her hair. He dropped the sandals in question of purchase and immediately began to run around with dread causing his heart to begin pounding away.  
"Odango!" He yelled and then stopped to think. "_If I were Odango, where would I go_?" and then the smell hit his senses, it smelled of fresh baked bread and delicious desserts. His panic began to subside and a small smile crept up his lips when he finally walked towards the patisserie and saw her ordering practically the entire store. He sighed deeply with relief and walked inside to stand beside her.

She turned to him with wide eyes. "Seiya! You found me! I was going to come and surprise you with treats!"

"You were about to give me a heart attack is what you were going to do!" He replied. "You can't just leave without saying anything, we need to always stick together, something could happen!"

She blinked and placed her hand over her lips having realized how worried he actually really looked. "Seiya! I'm sorry! I didn't think.. Oh I'm sorry!" She said and then placed her arms around him. He wanted to stay upset, but once he felt her arms around him, it all melted away. He pulled her closer and took a deep breath, she smelled so lovely, and her skin looked so soft, he was sure it was soft, he could just touch it for a second to confirm his thoughts, and he did. He gently let his fingers graze against her face, and the touch made Usagi gasp. She watched keenly as Seiya leaned forward and then gently kissed the area that he had previously touched. Time froze in that instant and she didn't know if she had been standing there for a few seconds or a whole hour. His touch and his kiss shouldn't have felt so good, she shouldn't feel the desire for him to take it further, but she did, and it scared her to feel that way.

"Seiya.." She whispered with a confused look on her face.

He sighed and smiled. "It's not your fault." He said. _"It's mine for still being in love with you._" He thought to himself.

He was about to turn around when she suddenly pulled him towards her. His eyes grew wide as her face came closer to his and for a moment, it almost seemed as if she were going to kiss his lips but her face side-tracked and her warm and soft lips landed on his cheek.  
The area instantly became red and his mouth dropped as he stuttered. She giggled in turn. "Thank you for worrying, I wont run off again." But instead of being reassured by her words, it only served to cause him anguish because she wouldn't stay in his arms like he really wanted her to, she would eventually 'run off' and he would go back to Kinmoku alone.

* * *

**Looks like things are starting to get complicated... What will happen next?**


End file.
